The evidence has been there for quite awhile that people who eat more protein tend to be satisfied with less food. We’ve also known that there are many hormones and other mechanisms that govern satiety in our bodies, and that one of them is a peptide released in the intestines called peptide PYY. Well, now we have evidence that links the two. It turns out that protein in particular “turns on” the release of peptide PYY, especially for the overweight.

In their paper published in Cell Metabolism, the researchers point out that our modern diet has less protein and more carbohydrate (and possibly less fat) than our hunter-gatherer ancestors. They found that protein increased peptide PYY and improved satiety in both the normal weight and obese individuals in their study. Interestingly, dietary fat boosted PPY in the normal weight subjects, but not in the obese ones. And, overall, there was more PPY release in the normal weight individuals than in the obese ones.

As pointed out in my recent article about protein, it is perfectly safe for most people to include more protein in their diets.

Interestingly, many of the news articles about this study make sure they to say negative things about reduced carbohydrate diets. Regina Wilshire discusses this in her blog, “Weight of the Evidence”.

Salmon Photo by Tondo Susanto

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